The 14th installment of this arts award show, organized by BOH Plantations & Kakiseni, will be coming soon on the 7th of May. In the meantime, the judges have deliberated and as per the new format of the Cammies (the more affectionate term for the awards), the Best Of List has now been released.
What change of format, you ask? Well this year the Cammies have gotten rid of suffocating categorical barriers in order to raise the bar of artistic excellence. The shows on the “Best of 2016” list were selected by the panel of Award judges from across all performing arts categories. They came together to deliberate and make the final selection as democratically as possible. To further encourage some sort of improvement, Kakiseni has also launched the #gamechangers social media campaign to run simultaneously with this year’s Awards, where Malaysian talents who have made their mark internationally would be highlighted. This includes the likes of Rani Moorthy, a UK-based theatre producer and filmmaker; Rendra Zawawi, a chart-topping music producer based in Los Angeles; and Kun Seng Keng Lion and Dragon Dance Association, the 11-time titleholder of the Genting World Lion Dance Championship.
As to the reasons for change, Caroline Russell, the CEO of BOH Plantations said at the press conference, “The intention is to look at continuing to see the arts award evolve. Nothing can stay the same over 14 years. The industry has matured to a point where we need to make some adjustments”.
This change, although controversial to many, is more focused towards providing more tangible benefits to the community. “Often, in our efforts to encourage more strategic partnerships between corporates and creatives, we find that many business entities don’t realise that they are entitled to receive tax benefits by supporting and investing in the arts”, afirms Low Ngai Yuen, the President of Kakiseni. “Starting this year, the Awards will be reinvented as a platform for producers to meet potential sponsors keen to financially back local performing art companies.”
The process of deliberation is adjudicated by a new panel of Executive Judges. Besides merely overseeing the 2016 judging process and appraising the subcategories for inclusion in the Awards, the Executive Judges are responsible for attending shows flagged for their exceptional quality for their consideration for next year’s “Best Of” List. Although what constitutes a show that is of “exceptional quality” was never really clarified, words like “woah” and “raising the bar” were predominantly thrown around.
KUALA LUMPUR, April 19 (Bernama) — The 14th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards this year is incorporating a new element in the form of the ‘Best Of 2016’ list featuring the most outstanding shows.
In so doing, BOH Plantations and Persatuan Kakiseni said they were directing the Awards in a new direction and raising the bar for artistic excellence.
The shows on the ‘Best Of 2016’ list were selected by the panel of Awards judges from across all performing art categories, according to a statement from the event organisers.
It said the shows would be given top priority by Kakiseni for exclusive meetings with potential investors and sponsors as well as international festival curators and directors.
BOH plantations and Kakiseni unveiled the performance art pieces of the much anticipated to “Best Of 2016” List of the 14th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards today at The St. Regis Kuala Lumpur.
The “Best Of” List
This year, BOH and Kakiseni are ambitiously taking the awards to a new direction and raising the bar for excellence. The new list of “Best Of” represents the pinnacle of this undertaking and will only consist of the best of the best shows from the previous year.
The shows on the list were selected by a panel of Award judges from all disciplines of performing arts categories who came together to deliberate and come to a final decision as democratically as possible.
Datuk Faridah Merican giving a speech after represent Joe Hasham receiving Best Actor in a Leading Role for Theatre Category during 13th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards 2016 at D’Saji Taman Tasik Titiwangsa. NSTP/NUR ADIBAH AHMAD IZAM
KUALA LUMPUR: Pan Productions’ musical Cabaret was a major winner, taking home best performance by an ensemble, best direction (Nell Ng), best choreography (Suhaili Micheline) and best performance in a supporting role (Zalina Lee) in the musical theatre category during last night’s 13th Boh Cameronian Arts Awards held at D’Saji in Taman Tasik Titiwangsa here. Joe Hasham won best actor in a leading role in the theatre category for Reservations, a short play about a man with memory loss. It was part of the theatre showcase Sisa-Sisa produced by The Actors Studio (TAS). TAS’ productions The Dawns Here Are Quiet, and Sisa-Sisa clinched four out of the five theatre category awards. Organised by Boh Plantations and Kakiseni, the awards paid tribute to traditional art forms as bangsawan, wayang kulit and mak yong. A total of 48 awards were presented in the categories of dance, music, theatre and musical theatre. For the full list of winners, visit awards.kakiseni.com. or www.facebook.com/mykakiseni
Kakiseni and BOH Plantations proudly announced the best local stagecraft practitioners and young performing artists in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR, 11 APRIL 2016 – It was a whirlwind day of awards as Kakiseni and BOH Plantations honoured the men and women who work tirelessly behind the scenes as well as the aspiring future stars of Malaysian theatre.
Hew Chooi Yoke (Partner of PWC, Malaysia) & CEO of BOH Plantation Caroline Russell
Today, Kakiseni and BOH Plantations fêted the recipients of the 13th BCAA Technical Awards at Kakiseni Central Command in recognition of their outstanding effort in categories including light, set, sound as well as costume, styling and make-up for dance, musical theatre and theatre. Without the dedication and hard work of these practitioners, our experience of the performing arts wouldn’t be as immersive or enjoyable.
Zen Tan, recipient of the Best Set Design award in Theatre, for The Dawns Here Are Quiet, said it was a “magical experience” to hear her name called out. Calling it “unexpected”, this is the first time Zen has won this award.
Another first-time recipient, Clarence Chua, who won Best Sound Design in Theatre, for indicinelive! The Revival Show 2015, was “stunned” and “shocked” as it was also his first ever nomination. Freddy Tan and Siti Farrah Abdullah, who co-produced the show under SIFU Production, were very proud of Clarence and his win. They said that Clarence “was easy to work with” and that he was a quick study who “understood non-technical terms”.
It was also a day for celebrating the hugely successful Junior Cammies again. Introduced last year, the awards sought to reward the best musical theatre staged at local secondary schools. This year, it also includes theatre productions providing a bigger impetus for students to stage more plays and improve to stand a chance of winning an award.
The Junior Cammies are an especially exciting and important award because the young people nominated represent the changing of the guard for local performing arts. By encouraging them to strive towards excellence in theatre, Kakiseni and BOH Plantations hope to ensure the continuity of performing arts in Malaysia will not go unbroken.
Junior Cammy recipient, Brendan Tang was awarded Best Principal Role for Theatre, for his performance in “The Ketchup Bottle” in Sri Emas International School’s Student Directed Festival Season 1. Calling his win “surprising” but “nice”, Brendan said performing in front of so many people was “nerve wrecking”.
While Reuben Chow, who was awarded the Junior Cammy for Best Production Design in Theatre, together with Shahrizuan Shaharuddin, for their work in “Fugue” in another Sri Emas production, Student Directed Festival Season 2, said that their win gave him “more drive to continue” and “it was good to receive this as an acknowledgement”.
“So many aspects are involved in the staging of any performing arts. Not only do we have the performers engaging with the audience, we also have our backstage superheroes. These are the people who work tirelessly around the clock to ensure that every little detail that can lend impact to the ambience and setting on stage are looked into. Therefore, the Tech Awards act as a great avenue to pay tribute to the technical teams who have been hard at work,” said Caroline Russell, CEO of BOH Plantations.
“For the second year in a row, the Junior Cammies recognise budding talent among our younger generation. The Junior Cammies is but a stepping stone for them and we applaud their persistence and passion for the arts. Certainly, their engaging performances coupled with their drive and potential, lend a youthful perspective that will orchestrate the further growth of the performing arts in Malaysia,” Russell added.
Low Ngai Yuen, president of Kakiseni, had this to say about the 13th BCAA Technical Awards and Junior Cammies, “Kakiseni and BOH have always been such strong supporters of the arts in Malaysia and even though the nominees for the Technical Awards go unseen, their work does not, and we fully appreciate what goes into making a good show great.”
She added: “We are also adamant that the arts are a crucial component to a well-rounded education, which is why the Junior Cammies gained so much traction last year. Over a hundred schools have participated in a variety of arts programmes from BootcampSENI to the National English Drama Competition 2015 and that contributed to the addition of a theatre category at the Junior Cammies on top of last year’s lone musical theatre category. But there must be continuous engagement with the young, the Ministry of Education, and school administrators and teachers to nurture the seedbed of talent and ensure that the creative industry flourishes in the future. Currently, Kakiseni and BOH are expanding the access of arts to schools and getting a larger number of artists involved in training, speaking to and informing the students about the importance of the arts in their lives.”
The 13BCAA Technical Awards and Junior Cammies were judged by an independent panel of judges comprising reputable practitioners in the performing arts industry. The tabulations and balloting were then conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), the Awards ballot partner.
The recipients of both the 13th BCAA Technical Awards and the Junior Cammies received an award in recognition of their success as well as a RM1,000 prize.
Members of the public can also own a little piece of the awards in the form of a commemorative BOH Cameronian Gold Blend Tea canister, available in 3 limited edition designs. They can redeem ONE Limited Edition BOH Cameronian Gold Blend tea canister when they purchase a copy of “And Oh, These Are My Superpowers” at their nearest MPH bookstore in a single receipt. This promotion is valid from 15 April 2016, while stocks last.
And remember to save the date on 24 April 2016, 8.00pm, when we go all out to celebrate the 13th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards at D’Saji KL Titiwangsa, Lot 143, Seksyen 87, Jalan Kuantan, 53200 Kuala Lumpur.
For a complete list of the recipients of the Technical Awards and the Junior Cammies, please refer to the attached document. For more information on the 13th BOH Cameronian Arts Awards, please visit http://awards.kakiseni.com
